# Lawrence Brook > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Lawrence_Brook > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Lawrence_Brook.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Brook > Source revision: 1281748550 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) **Lawrence Brook** is a [tributary](/source/Tributary) of the [Raritan River](/source/Raritan_River) in [Middlesex County, New Jersey](/source/Middlesex_County,_New_Jersey), in the United States.[1] ## Course Originally a 10-mile (16-kilometre) stream, its course now includes man-made lakes created by dams built in the 19th and 20th centuries: Deans Pond ([South Brunswick](/source/South_Brunswick,_New_Jersey)), Davidsons Mill Pond (South Brunswick), [Farrington Lake](/source/Farrington_Lake) (South Brunswick, [North Brunswick](/source/North_Brunswick,_New_Jersey) and [East Brunswick](/source/East_Brunswick,_New_Jersey)), Mill Pond (Milltown), and [Westons Mill Pond](/source/Westons_Mill_Pond) ([Milltown](/source/Milltown,_New_Jersey), East Brunswick, North Brunswick and New Brunswick). Its lowest section, near the Raritan River, is tidal; it hosts marine wildlife and is regarded as a coastal area. Its [drainage basin](/source/Drainage_basin), the Lawrence Brook watershed, is a 40-square mile (100-square kilometre) area, identified by the [USGS](/source/USGS) code *HUC 02030105130*. At the stretch at Weston's Mill Pond, Lawrence Brook crosses [Rutgers University](/source/Rutgers_University)'s Cook Campus, along the vegetable research farm, the equine research farm, [Rutgers Gardens](/source/Rutgers_Gardens), and Helyar forest. Lawrence Brook is a [wildlife corridor](/source/Wildlife_corridor), a bird migration area and a highly sensitive body of water. Power boats, except with an electric motor, are not permitted on the brook. ## History - This stream was called **Piscopeek** by the Unami Lenni [Lenape](/source/Lenape) Indians. Its current name comes from Mr.**Thomas Lawrence**, a New York City baker, who acquired its surrounding land in the 17th century.[2] Some historical maps show the spelling *Lawrence's Brook*. - In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Farrington Lake area served as a resort area, with a trolley line running from New Brunswick through Milltown then turning south to eventually end at the State Fair Grounds in Trenton. The lake (named for a mayor of New Brunswick who died during WWI) was formed by a dam built above a lower working dam that powered a snuff mill built in the mid 19th century. ## Succession and pathway of Lawrence Brook The Lawrence Brook, a 30-mile inland waterway (New Jersey), connects from the Raritan Bay to the lesser known end; splitting apart into two branches in South Brunswick, this is a list of important landmarks in Central New Jersey where the Lawrence Brook is present (sometimes in larger water-body forms). - **Atlantic Ocean** (Starts Here, near the [Raritan Bay](/source/Raritan_Bay)) - **Raritan Bay to the Mouth of Raritan River** (Near [Perth Amboy, NJ](/source/Perth_Amboy,_New_Jersey) and passes under the Governor Alfred E. Driscoll Bridge) - **Raritan River** (Continues for about 3-5 Miles; it splits into a smaller branch of the [Raritan River](/source/Raritan_River) that passes to the left of [Basilone Bridge](/source/Basilone_Memorial_Bridge)) - **Raritan River** (Turns Left Near the Weston's Mills Subdivision and passes near the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Tower Center) - **Westons Mills Pond** (Continues South and intersects Ryders Lane in East Brunswick; near [Rutgers Vegetable Garden](https://rutgersgardens.rutgers.edu/)) - **Lawrence Brook** (Connects Westons Mills Pond to the [Farrington Lake](/source/Farrington_Lake)) - **Farrington Lake** (This is the longest stretch of the Lawrence Brook [in the form of [Farrington Lake](/source/Farrington_Lake)] and passes through [North Brunswick, NJ](/source/North_Brunswick,_New_Jersey)) - **Lawrence Brook** (At the Intersection of Riva Avenue and Davidson's Mill Road, Lawrence Brook connects [Farrington Lake](/source/Farrington_Lake) to [Davidson's Mill Pond](http://www.middlesexcountynj.gov/about/ParksRecreation/Pages/PR/Davidson's-Mill-Pond-Park.aspx) in [Deans, South Brunswick, NJ](/source/South_Brunswick,_New_Jersey)) - **Davidson's Mill Pond** (Goes underneath US-130, and continually reduces in width; continues to Deans Pond North of the Deans Pond Crossing Subdivision [Deans Pond- Marsh; seasonally flooded] - **Lawrence Brook** (Continues North and Northwest from the [Crossroads Middle School](https://xr.sbschools.org); has been artificially drained under the [Northeast Corridor Train Track](/source/Northeast_Corridor_Line) and near the Southridge Woods Apartment Complex. Continues, during flooded seasons, approximately parallel to Freedom Trail in South Brunswick.) - **Lawrence Brook** (Continues through [South Brunswick](/source/South_Brunswick,_New_Jersey), perpendicularly crosses the [Northeast Corridor Train Track](/source/Northeast_Corridor_Line) (drained) and then enters into a marsh) - **Lawrence Brook** (Continues through the Marsh (Off Of New Road) and splits into two branches: - *1: Intersects New Road, Continues Roughly Parallel to The Grande Subdivision, and connects with the [Devils Brook](/source/Devils_Brook) into Lake McCormack [Audubon’s Plainsboro Preserve](https://www.plainsboronj.com/250/Plainsboro-Preserve)* - *2: Continues Through Marsh, enters Forested Areas, and Ends North of the Tall Timbers Cricket Park in a Smaller Marsh.* ## Parks along Lawrence Brook - Davidsons Mill Pond County Park (South Brunswick) - Ireland Brook County Park (South Brunswick and East Brunswick) - Bicentennial Park (East Brunswick) - North Brunswick Memorial Park (North Brunswick) - Brook Park (Milltown) - Mill Pond Park (Milltown) - [Rutgers Gardens](/source/Rutgers_Gardens) and Helyar Woods (Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey) ## Main tributaries - Brook from the beaver pond to Davidsons Mill Pond - [Ireland Brook](/source/Ireland_Brook) - [Oakeys Brook](/source/Oakeys_Brook_(New_Jersey)) - [Cow Yard Brook](/source/Cow_Yard_Brook), a branch of the Oakeys Brook - [Beaverdam Brook](/source/Beaverdam_Brook) - [Sucker Brook](/source/Sucker_Brook_(Lawrence_Brook)) - [Sawmill Brook](/source/Sawmill_Brook) - Brook in [Rutgers Gardens](/source/Rutgers_Gardens) (along the bamboo forest), sometimes called *Doc Brook* - Brook in Rutgers' Helyar Woods (with a small waterfall), sometimes called *Helyar Brook* - [Terhune Run](/source/Terhune_Run) - [Great Ditch](/source/Great_Ditch) ## See also - [List of rivers of New Jersey](/source/List_of_rivers_of_New_Jersey) ## References 1. Gertler, Edward. *Garden State Canoeing*, Seneca Press, 2002. ISBN 0-9605908-8-9 1. Indian bill of sale, Trenton Museum ## External links - [The Scenic Lawrence Brook (pictures)](http://scenic-lawrencebrook.awardspace.INFO/) - [Lawrence brook History](https://web.archive.org/web/20110721185230/http://scenic-lawrencebrook.awardspace.info/SLB_history.htm) - [Lawrence Brook Watershed Partnership (LBWP) : Local watershed association](https://morgan-lewis-9iad.squarespace.com/) - [Lawrence Brook Watershed Partnership](https://www.facebook.com/LawrenceBrookWatershedPartnership/) on [Facebook](/source/Facebook) - [U.S. Geological Survey: NJ stream gaging stations](http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nj/nwis/current/?type=flow) - [Davidsons Mill Pond Park](https://web.archive.org/web/20060320143629/http://co.middlesex.nj.us/parksrecreation/davidson.asp) - [Davidsons Mill Pond Park history (1938-1968)](http://abcd.awardspace.info/davidsons_mill_pond_park_history.html) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Lawrence Brook](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Brook) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Brook?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.